Let’s get the build started!
I always begin a build by putting together the weapons, but this time I decided to mix it up by building the body first. After all, if you build the weapons first, you can’t do anything with them, but if you build the body first, you can still post it or stand it up and have it hang out while you wrap up with the weapons.
Runners
We’ve got about eleven runners here, which is a decent size for a High Grade. I expect this to be a good meaty build.
Head
I went went from the top down, building the head. There’s not much to say about it - it assembles like any other Zeon mobile suit head. I like how the High Grade Zakus incorporate the moveable monoeye that debuted with the Real Grade variant, though it seems like you have to adjust it manually (the RG Zaku eye will automatically move when you turn the head). Maybe I did something wrong?
I think that maybe I put the eye decal too high up. It bothers me more or less depending on what angle I’m viewing it from.
This kit comes with a ton of decals to allow you to customize its look. In regards to the head, it includes an optional Black Tri Stars logo for the side, and a Zeon logo for the “forehead” if you so choose. I added the Tri Stars decal, because it looks like a kill count rather than a squadron logo.
Weapons
As soon as I built the head I fell right back into my old habits. I’m not entirely sure why I switched back to building weapons. I think I might have seen the Heat Hawk, figured it was an easy win, and everything just snowballed from there.
Ah well, not the end of the world. Let’s look at some weapons!
Heat Hawk
You get two Heat Hawks. One is “deactivated”, and can be holstered on the unit.
The other is “activated” and has its bladed edge exposed. The last time I tried to paint a Heat Hawk, I tried to paint the blade grey to give it a bit of color separation, but it turned out to be a mess, mostly due to some misapplied masking tape.
This time I used no tape. I simply applied the paint directly onto the edge and let it sit. The fact that the edge sits at a different angle from the rest of the blade actually kept the paint from encroaching where it didn’t belong. Also, instead of grey, I used a rough blend of red and orange paint, just barely mixed. I thought a nice swirly mixture of the two colors would be the closest I could get to making it look the axe was hot. I think it came out pretty good all things considered.
Machine Gun
As I said in the intro, this machine gun does use the ammo drum attached to the top, but everything else about the piece looks the same as the traditional, drum-fed machine gun.
In terms of detailing, I added a bit of gold paint on one side to what looked to me like the ejection port, so that it looks like there is a bullet chambered. Aside from that, I did some panel lining of the usual sort, and that was pretty much it.
Since this is a belt fed gun, it comes with a long, flexible piece of plastic that looks like a long strip of bullets. The last time I had a piece like that I painted it tan, since I only had three colors of paint. This time I painted it gold, and hit it with some glossy clear coat to give it some extra shine. It looks really nice, but I am afraid that with enough bending and flexing it will either break, or the paint will begin to crack.
Bazooka
This is the first bazooka I’ve encountered with removable ammo clips. It is also quite large, and rather simple in shape. That’s about all I’ve got for this one.
Ammo Clips
The missile packs contain … flat missiles? Okay …
I painted one side red and the other grey, to give a sort of front/back appearance.
Anti-Ship Rifle
This is called an “Anti-Ship Rifle”, but looks more like a Sniper Rifle.
I love it.
It is oversized and kind of ridiculous in a good way. I figured I’d give it some special attention, being the standout weapon in the kit. I painted it black, then added all sorts of highlights using white and metallic paint. Some of these highlights ended up a bit messier than I intended, but the overall look is about what I imagined.
Chest
The kit comes with two chest pieces for you to choose from. One includes the special, exclusive, Zaku II C6 features, and the other is the original, plain Zaku II chest.
I chose the new one, as I found the additions rather promising.
“Promising” being the key word. Being a High Grade kit, these details are molded right into the plastic. If left as-is, they’re a bit hard to see, especially from a distance.
After applying a bit of color, however, the opposite becomes true, and these new little tidbits really stand out.
I particularly like the machine gun on the right side. It has a sort of 3d effect that makes it look like it is really embedded in the chest. I also like the very visible cockpit door, which I tried to panel line with some white paint to help it stand out.
Aside from these new details, however, this is a standard Zaku chest section. I still don’t like how Bandai uses two long, overly flexible pieces for the piping/tubing. I always feel like they are on the verge of breaking apart once they are positioned properly.
I should note that the decal sheet includes the numbers 101-105 that you can use to customize your unit. I chose 103 simply because it was a prime number, and 101 wasn’t quite weird enough.
Oh, and I should mention the backbacks. You can choose from two styles. I think I prefer the look of the one on the right, but chose the one on the left, as that’s the “default” choice, and it seems as if the kit was designed with it in mind.
Lower Torso
Same as it ever was, aside from a nifty new decal.
The assembly here is rock solid. The skirt armor is not going to fall off any time soon.
Feet
The foot is made of two distinct sections, which is not typical for a High Grade. I don’t think it offers much in the way of better articulation, but I still appreciate the sense of part separation it contributes.
Once again I tried panel lining using white paint. I think the results are pretty good!
Legs
The legs are probably the most complicated part of the build, both in terms of parts and detailing. I also think the legs are the most interesting and most important part of the Zaku. There’s so much going on here, with different curves and shapes and details. Their sheer width also gives the entire mecha an extra sense of weight and heft.
Looking at the backside, you can see some of my mistakes, including some paint leftover from the fingerprints of dirty hands. I also tried to spray the inner joints with glossy clearcoat, and the resulting finish was less than smooth. I patched it up by coloring in some of these parts with a metallic marker, which you can see in roughyl the middle of the leg.
Here is another (blurry) shot of those glossy inner parts.
One thing that kind of bugs me is how the piping on the legs is made out of a single piece of plastic that just kind of … floats around on the side of the leg. It feels a bit cheap at times.
Arms
I forgot how many layers or armor go into the arms of a Zaku. Building them isn’t exactly intensive, but it is more involved than what you get in most High Grade kits.
I’ve seen some complaints online about the holes cut into the shoulder shield in order to accommodate the attachable missile packs. I don’t consider it to be such an eyesore, but I also wonder if the missile packs could have been redesigned to slot on the inside of the shield.
This kit comes with an alternate set of shoulder spikes for the left arm, one in which some of the spikes are removed. I’m not sure what the purpose is, but the option is there if that interests you.
Note - the piece in the far left in the photo above is the wrist-mounted gun that comes as part of the R6 accessory pack.
That’s it for parts and pieces. In the next post, we will go over the fully assembled kit!